It's a number made famous by the likes of Diego Maradona, Pele and Zinedine Zidane.

But over the years, players wearing jersey number 10 at Kaizer Chiefs have somehow failed to live up to expectations. The pressure is now on Siphelele Ntshangase at Naturena, after he was handed that jersey last week.

Last season Ntshangase was wearing No 5 after joining from Baroka in December. He has since inherited the No 10 from Keagan Buchanan, who has left after an unimpressive spell at Chiefs.

The lad from Pongola, KZN, endured a rather tumultuous maiden campaign with the Phefeni Glamour Boys. Stashi, as Ntshangase is affectionately known, started only one of the nine games he played, failing to register even a single goal.

Having also donned this iconic jersey at Chiefs in his second stint between 2012 and 2015, Siyabonga Nkosi feels Ntshangase deserves No 10 at Chiefs.

"Traditionally, it's players of his profile that are given No 10. His style of play warrants that he gets this jersey. He has the flair, he plays attractive football," Nkosi told Sowetan yesterday.

"Obviously, the important thing for him is to produce good results for the team. Everyone is expecting him to influence how the team plays."

Nkosi challenged Ntshangase to be more influential in dictating how Chiefs play.

"One thing he has to know is that he must have the right concept of using his skills. Many players who have his attributes tend to have the wrong concept of how to play, especially in relation to the modern style of play. He must help Chiefs become dangerous when they attack, that's the element he needs to work on.

"His job as a playmaker is to dictate how the team must play. He must not have 100 touches and stand on the ball. Ntshangase must make the team effective and I trust his capabilities," noted Nkosi.

Recently, only Stanton Fredericks showed some flashes of brilliance wearing the No 10 shirt at Chiefs. He played 79 games, scoring 10 goals between 2001 and 2004. Players such as Zambia-born striker Songwe Chalwe, Michael Nkambule, Mthokozisi Yende and Buchanan are some of the players who struggled with the No 10 jersey.